Opponents rally against Zohydro makers, Congress

BOSTON — Incensed by overdose deaths and what they say is lax oversight of the pharmaceutical industry, activists and others rallied on the Statehouse steps Tuesday against the new anti-pain medication Zohydro.

BOSTON — Incensed by overdose deaths and what they say is lax oversight of the pharmaceutical industry, activists and others rallied on the Statehouse steps Tuesday against the new anti-pain medication Zohydro.

Gov. Deval Patrick attempted to ban the painkiller but was blocked when a federal judge agreed with the company Zogenix that the state cannot trump the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which approved the drug in October against the recommendation of its scientific advisory panel.

Mothers who became activists after their children fell into addiction made up a major portion of the rally on the Statehouse steps. Earlier in the month, some were at federal court and challenged Zogenix President Stephen Farr.

Janis McGrory, a Harwich High School teacher, showed the crowd a photo of her daughter, who she said became addicted to prescription pain medication, then heroin, and died three years ago in Lynn with a "needle stuck in her neck."

"This girl is the face of addiction today," McGrory said. She said: "She was an honor student. ... She was killed. She was murdered by prescription drugs."

McGrory said she became involved in Learn to Cope and is now involved with the national group Fed-Up, which is organizing a rally in the nation's capital in September.

Unlike other opioid medications, Zohydro does not include acetaminophen, which can cause liver damage when used over an extended period.

The emergence of the new painkiller has raised worries amid widespread reports of a crisis of heroin and opioid addiction.

After the ban was overturned, the Patrick administration issued new regulatory limits on the drug, which first hit the market in March, following its approval in October.

Rep. Liz Malia, the House chairwoman of the Committee on Mental Health and Substance Abuse, said she and Sen. John Keenan, the Senate chairman of the Committee on Public Health, have legislation that would set new strictures through law. Malia said "the history of OxyContin" is instructive.

Malia, Patrick and others want the drugmaker to develop a tamper-resistant formulation.

"There's something wrong with this country when the pharmaceutical companies are having their way with Congress," said AFL-CIO of Massachusetts President Steve Tolman, decrying the lack of treatment for the millions addicted to drugs.